Oviedo, FL – On behalf of over 150,000 Florida members of the ONE Campaign, ONE congratulated Pastor Joe MacLaren and his congregation for proclaiming University Carillon United Methodist Church (UCUMC) a Church of ONE. UCUMC Pastor Joe MacLaren and his congregation became the country’s first Church of ONE, joining more than 100 Cities, States and Colleges of ONE from across the United States who are raising their voices in support of the effort against global disease and poverty. In Florida, Oviedo, Orlando, Sarasota, Hollywood and Oakland  City have been declared Cities of ONE.

Upon declaring UCUMC a “Church  of ONE”, UCUMC Pastor MacLaren said, “There are 178 references in Christian scripture to the poor. When Jesus announced his mission on earth to the people, He said, ‘The Lord’s Spirit has come to me, because he has chosen me to tell the good news to the poor. The Lord has sent me to announce freedom for prisoners, to give sight to the blind, to free everyone who suffers.’ (Luke 4:18)”

Pastor Maclaren continued, “It was one of Jesus’ highest priorities to minister to the poor and marginalized. If it was a high priority for Jesus, it has to be a high priority for us, His followers. That is why I am proud that University Carillon  United Methodist  Church is the first ever community of faith to align with the ONE Campaign.” The proclamation was approved by the UCUMC Leadership Council on Monday, June 4, 2007.

Joan Faulkner, the Florida ONE Field Organizer who led the effort to obtain the proclamation said, “Pastor MacLaren and the congregation of University Carillon United Methodist Church embodied the message in Micah 6:8 when they declared themselves a Church of ONE.”

Micah 6:8 reads, “He has shown all you people what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Faulkner continued, “Faith leaders and congregations are a crucial element in the fight to save lives in Africa and elsewhere in the poorest countries. Fighting extreme poverty and disease is the right thing to do, and I hope citizens, elected officials and congregations from all different denominations across the state will consider joining UCUMC and millions of ONE members in the fight against extreme poverty and global disease.”

Pastor MacLaren’s declaration comes on the heels of the high-profile launch of ONE Vote ’08. ONE Vote ’08 brings together faith leaders, celebrity supporters, political figures and ONE members from across the country for an unprecedented, non-partisan campaign to save lives and secure America’s future by energizing presidential candidates and ONE’s 2.4 million members to make the fight against global extreme poverty a key foreign policy issue in the 2008 presidential election.

“The faith community plays a vital role in ensuring that America’s elected leaders remain true to the values our nation is based on, including helping others help themselves and in justice for all,” said Kimberly Cadena, spokesperson for the ONE Campaign. “The moral leadership Pastor MacLaren and his congregation demonstrated today affects both their local community and the lives of millions around the world in the poorest countries. Here in Oviedo, access to clean water and a basic education is sometimes taken for granted, but in Africa and elsewhere, those basics are only dreamt of. The world’s poorest people got powerful new allies in the fight against global disease and extreme poverty when the UCUMC congregation dedicated themselves to this effort.”

ONE is a campaign by Americans to rally Americans to help end poverty and promote health in Africa and elsewhere in poor countries. ONE is working to help save 15,000 lives a day, prevent the deaths of 5.4 million children, provide free access to primary education for out-of-school children and deliver access to clean water for 450 million people around the world.

Through ONE.org and work on the ground in communities, colleges and churches across the U.S., ONE’s 2.4 million members are working to change the world by asking America’s leaders to do even more to lead the world in bringing hope and opportunity to the world’s poorest people.